As the rescue group continued descending into the underground complex, deeper within the cavern system, the Mirialan Jedi Master regained consciousness. She groggily opened her eyes to find her hands restrained and her body being dragged through the dirt. Two Geonosian warriors gripping her arms were carrying her through the tunnel network.
In a burst of energy, Luminara kicked free from her captors, only to discover that her wrists were bound with energy shackles.
She attempted to fight off the surrounding Geonosians, but the confined space severely limited her mobility and fighting capability.
Meanwhile, the Jedi, Avengers, and clone troopers continued advancing deeper into the hive...
"Master Kenobi!" Suddenly, they received an emergency transmission from Luminara. Obi-Wan activated his wrist communicator, allowing the others to hear her voice clearly. "Obi-Wan, if you're down here, you must evacuate immediately. Get out now. I repeat—" The transmission abruptly cut to static.
"She must be close by."
The group accelerated their pace, hoping to reach their fellow Jedi before anything terrible happened to her. However, they paused when they heard a series of clicking sounds and unnatural groans echoing from the darkness ahead. Directing their illumination toward the source, they observed numerous Geonosians approaching them... moving in a distinctly abnormal manner.
Soon, the group heard similar sounds emanating from all directions, and everyone looked around to see the same disturbing behavior from the planet's indigenous population.
"I don't like the look of this at all."
The clone troopers opened fire on the approaching threats, striking the Geonosians in vital areas and center mass. But regardless of the damage inflicted, they continued advancing. Even lightsaber strikes seemed ineffective at stopping them.
As one creature approached, Rhodes observed something writhing in and out of the Geonosian's nasal cavity. He quickly enhanced his optical zoom.
"Perfect, something worse than xenomorphs. Alien zombies!" Rhodes began targeting the undead creatures' heads and necks with concentrated fire.
"That's not working, Rhodey!" Anakin said urgently, cutting through one of the creatures.
Rhodes advanced and proceeded to pummel one Geonosian with sustained weapons fire, completely destroying its head.
"You need to destroy their brains or decapitate them. That's the only effective method to stop them."
"Do as the Colonel suggests!" Cody shouted, grabbing a Geonosian by the throat with one hand while shooting it repeatedly in the head until it finally collapsed and remained motionless.
The group began being overwhelmed by sheer numbers, prompting Obi-Wan to order a tactical withdrawal. He then commanded the destruction of tunnel supports to create distance from the undead horde. The clones followed orders, detonating support beams as rocks quickly collapsed and sealed the passage behind them. The group breathed collectively as the dust settled and virtually no sounds could be heard from the other side.
"Well, that's not terrifying at all," Rhodes commented, relieved as he moved away from the sealed tunnel.
"What exactly was happening back there?" Steve asked with grave concern. "Most of our attacks barely slowed them down."
"Those were no ordinary Geonosians," Anakin said, clearly disturbed by their recent encounter. "We could barely eliminate them."
Obi-Wan approached a nearby cavern wall and leaned against it, contemplating the enemy they had just faced.
"I have heard that a Geonosian hive mind possesses such strength and power that it can maintain neural connections with its warriors even after death."
"So we can't kill them because—"
Obi-Wan completed Anakin's thought. "They're already dead, yes."
"Probably due to those parasites in their nasal cavities," Rhodes added.
"What did you observe?" Obi-Wan inquired.
"Some kind of parasitic worm," Rhodes explained, tapping his helmet. "Saw it moving in and out of a Geonosian's nose."
"Well, it would make sense for it to interface directly with the brain," Obi-Wan muttered thoughtfully. "So if these parasites can control the Geonosians, then what controls the parasites?"
"This situation is escalating beyond our parameters," Steve observed grimly.
"That seems impossible."
"Possible or not, these creatures will continue functioning even if we dismember them or shoot them down. Only through Rhodey's targeting method can we gain tactical advantage."
"So what's our next move?" Rhodes asked. "Because discussing all this parasite-controlled-zombie situation doesn't exactly help Luminara right now. They captured her alive for a reason."
"Then we must accelerate our timeline," Obi-Wan decided.
"Understood." Anakin raised his wrist communicator and activated the transmitter, but received an error indicator. "Nothing—no signal at this depth."
"There's minimal signal strength from the Avengers communicator," Rhodes informed the group. "We're proceeding too deep underground."
Obi-Wan looked at Steve. "Captain Rogers, can you take two men back to the surface and request reinforcements?"
"Affirmative," Steve replied tersely.
"Shift, Gear," Cody indicated two clone troopers. "Accompany Captain Rogers topside."
Steve and the two clones began retracing their route while the others continued advancing underground.
They moved cautiously on their return journey. At their current pace it would take considerable time, but they were operating in unfamiliar hostile territory. The Geonosians held significant tactical advantage here, and the team couldn't afford to take unnecessary risks.
"Can't wait to reach the surface," Shift muttered.
"Agreed," Gear responded. "This place is deeply unsettling."
"Stay close formation," Steve ordered. "And maintain alertness. From what we've observed, the creatures might be most easily bypassed through stealth."
"Yes, sir," both clones responded simultaneously.
It wasn't long before Shift detected movement first, his helmet illumination revealing activity at the far end of the tunnel. He immediately fired a warning shot, followed by the all-too-familiar, disturbing sounds.
"Contact!" Shift shouted as several undead Geonosians emerged around their position.
"Take cover!" Steve commanded, and both clones ducked as Steve hurled his shield at a calculated angle.
The shield ricocheted off the tunnel walls, bouncing side to side as it sliced through the undead creatures, severing their bodies into pieces.
Shift and Gear remembered Rhodes's tactical advice, both focusing on engaging one Geonosian at a time while targeting their heads with precision shots.
However, they could only eliminate them individually, and the zombies continued advancing on their position.
"—argh!"
"Shift!" Gear reached out and grabbed his brother, pulling him away from a Geonosian's grasp.
Steve suddenly vaulted over them, gripping his shield and swinging his arm in wide arcs. His vibranium disc easily cleaved through the Geonosians before spinning around to engage several more undead creatures. Shift and Gear recovered quickly and joined Steve's counterattack.
"Are you both operational?" Steve asked.
"Yes, sir."
"Appreciated."
"Captain Rogers, what's your status?" Obi-Wan inquired through Steve's Avengers communicator. "We detected blaster fire."
"We're secure," Steve responded. "Some undead attempted to ambush us, but we neutralized the threat. We'll maintain communication regarding our progress to the surface."
"Acknowledged."
"Reinforcements will arrive shortly, Obi-Wan."
"Captain Rogers, hearing such assurance from you leaves no doubt," Obi-Wan replied before continuing deeper into the complex.
"So backup is en route," Gree said with obvious relief.
"Now we just need to locate Luminara," Rhodes stated with determination.
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